Z, I've had good luck on birch using powdered RIT dye mixed with denatured alcohol. I used a Preval sprayer to spray mine, but if you have your own airbrush it'll look even better. The dye does a much better job of coloring the wood than stain, as you found out stain can get blotchy on birch. As far as a finish is concerned, any of the wipe on oil finishes will do a good job. My favorite to date is Minwax Antique oil, it is harder and more durable than some of the other I've tried......Mike

Thanks for all the ideas. For now, I added some of Big Z's super-secret wood formula.

for quick jobs that look great, im a believer in spray on spar urethane...simple to use....and IMO it looks great....i use the stuff alot...did 1 stock with it and will do more with it...and seems like a very durable finish as well...